


We Could Call It Even

by TheseLinesofLightning



Category: Strictly Come Dancing RPF
Genre: F/M, I started typing and couldn't stop, I'm Sorry, and if the world was covid free, but I promise it works itself out, if RPF isn't your thing don't read, slight angst, this is what we'd see, we all needed a little light after today
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-30
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:01:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28432830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheseLinesofLightning/pseuds/TheseLinesofLightning
Summary: A confidence crisis plus a family holiday equals mild angst and lots of affirmation.
Relationships: Ranvir Singh/Giovanni Pernice
Comments: 16
Kudos: 38





	We Could Call It Even

Ranvir tilted her head back, enjoying the last of the suns rays on her face. It was February half term and whilst the nights were beginning to get lighter, the temperature still remained fairly low in the UK and so the three of them had taken a little vacation time for some well deserved vitamin D. Ranvir watched as Giovanni pushed open the door to their villa for the next week and Tushaan ran straight past him and into the property giggling. She smiled slightly and rolled her eyes at his boyish behaviour before turning to see her partner was chivalrously holding the door open for her, waiting for her to enter. She passed through with a small smile and without comment, her hand luggage in the form of a large tote bag hanging from her shoulder.

  
It had been Giovanni’s idea to take a holiday just the three of them and she had left him entirely to his own devices to plan it. Well, mostly to his own devices – if he’d had his way she was sure they’d have taken a trip just the two of them to an adults only, all inclusive, spa hotel. He’d been pretty secretive about the details but she did make sure there was a kid’s club for her son and plenty of excursions for the three of them to do.

Somehow they’d ended up in the Maldives in one of those hotels Ranvir was sure only existed on Instagram but she now faced in the flesh. It was a little one-storey, on the water hut with their own private portion of the ocean. The building was west facing so she could look forward to some beautiful sunsets and there was a distinct freshness in the air that you just couldn’t get back home. She heard Giovanni shut the door behind her and turned to face him, a slow grin stretching over her features.

“Good job, Pernice,”

“You like?” His smile echoed hers as he stepped into her space.

“I like,” she affirmed stretching up onto her tiptoes to kiss him softly.

“Mum!” Tushaan raced into the room, barely stopping himself from crashing into them both, “you have to come see my room, it’s got double bunk beds!”

“Double bunk beds?” Ranvir looked at him dubiously.

“Just come see,” her son rolled his eyes.

“Can I have twenty seconds to put my hand luggage down first?” She asked, sliding her tote bag into the crook of her elbow.

“Fine, but come see my room afterward, you too Gio.”

The pair watched him disappear back down the hallway just as fast as he’d come as Ranvir placed her bag by the front door.

“Guess we’re exploring later,” she laughed nervously; inexplicably worried that Giovanni would be annoyed.

“Plenty of time,” he said, placing his duffel bag beside hers and then reaching for her hand. “I wanna see these,” he paused, remembering the word, “double bed bunks?”

“Bunk beds,” Ranvir grinned, a little laugh escaping her.

“Oh yeah,” he said sarcastically, “laugh at the Italian whose fourth language is English,”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re very impressive,” she rolled her eyes, still smiling as he squeezed her hand.

-

“Giovanni, this place…” Ranvir trailed off barely containing her delight as she scanned the room.

Opposite the entrance to the master where she stood, a large set of glass bi-fold doors took up the entire far wall, beyond which a small pier stretched over the water with a view that seemed endlessly blue. To the right an exceptionally comfy looking king-size bed sat against a navy wall, their two suitcases neatly placed side by side at the end of the comforter. The rest of the room was pretty bare but modern and spacious with a built in wardrobe close to where they stood and another set of doors which Ranvir assumed led to their ensuite.

“You like it?” Giovanni’s soft Italian accent permeated her thoughts, his hands on her shoulders and a smirk on his face as he watched her.

“It’s beautiful,” she grinned turning in his arms to look up at him, her arms locking around his waist. Gio hummed in agreement and then bent to kiss her softly. “We should unpack,” she said quietly as he nodded, his nose pressed against hers.

“But first,” he grinned, bending slightly and wrapping his arms around her middle picking her up as she shrieked with laughter, her hands desperately pushing against his shoulders.

“Giovanni! Put me down!”

“Okay,” he shrugged taking a few steps before unceremoniously dumping her on the bed they would call theirs for the next week. Still laughing, her hair fanned out behind her, Gio kissed her hard, letting his hands slide under her white tee to the bare skin underneath.

“We’re supposed to be unpacking,” Ranvir smirked a moment later as her head tilted back to give him better access to her neck. The feel of his stubble against her chest was enough to make her eyes roll.

“I am,” he said against her skin as he continued to push her t-shirt up and over her ribs.

Ranvir let out a huge cackle, the sound turning to wheezes as she felt him laugh with her, her body shaking under his.

“You are a terrible influence,” she managed to get out as he finally pulled back to look her in the eye.

Not for the first time, Ranvir wondered how on earth she’d got so lucky. Not only was Giovanni potentially the most attractive man she’d ever laid eyes on but he also had a heart of gold. He knew how to make her laugh, treated her son like his own and accepted her for everything she was whilst also getting the absolute best out of her. She suppressed the wave of affection that felt suspiciously like love that came over her as she brushed his long fringe from his eyes, her fingers continuing down his face until she cupped his jaw with a small smile. He raised an eyebrow at her, clearly curious as to what she was thinking but instead of saying she brought his face to hers and kissed him gently.

“Thank you,” she said when they’d parted.

“What for?” He asked, rolling to the side and tilting his head to watch her.

“This place,” she replied tugging her t-shirt back down shyly, “you,” Ranvir twisted to look at him, “the past few months,”

Giovanni smiled softly, his mouth opening to reply when the door to their room burst open and Tushaan stood grinning toothily in the entrance.

“Mum, you have to come see this,” he ran in, grabbing his Mum’s hand and then Giovanni’s, “you too, Gio, this place is the coolest!”

“I’m glad you like it little man,” Giovanni grinned as they were both pulled along by a too tall for his age eight year old. He dragged them through the family room rambling excitedly yet indiscernibly about what he’d found until they finally came to a stop at a set of stairs Ranvir hadn’t noticed before, although they hadn’t exactly done a lot of exploration in the twenty minutes they’d been here. The stairs leading down were tucked in-between the kitchen and the dining room at the far end of their water property.

“Come on!” Tushaan let go of their hands and raced down the stairs, almost tripping as he reached the bottom.

“Slow down,” Ranvir rolled her eyes but followed him carefully, Giovanni hot on her heels.

As she reached the bottom and rounded the corner she stopped in her tracks, her partner almost bumping into her back. “Woah,”

“Woah,” Giovanni echoed.

The room was tiny, just big enough to hold a small sofa and some armchairs. The entire back wall was a bookcase and the wall opposite was made completely of glass allowing them a full view of the ocean floor.

“Cool, right?” Tushaan asked, his hands pressed against the glass as a shoal of fish swam by.

“Really cool,” Giovanni padded over to him, standing at his side as her son pointed out more fish, a huge grin plastered on his face.

Ranvir allowed herself a small smile as Tushaan tucked himself into Giovanni’s side. She knew how easy it had been for her son to fall in love with Gio but seeing them interact so naturally always gave her reason to pause. It would’ve been so easy for Tushaan to reject him in any capacity but her son had such a huge heart and had taken to him like his new favourite teacher, always wanting to learn more from him or be more like him. She watched as he let out a huge yawn and slid his hand into Giovanni’s, leaning on him for support.

“Alright buddy, I think it’s someone’s bedtime,” she smiled, making her way over to the pair.

“Already?” Tushaan looked up at her with wide brown eyes, so much like hers.

“Afraid so, we had a long flight,” she ruffled his hair affectionately, “but look at it this way, the sooner you go to bed, the quicker you can get up in the morning and we can go snorkelling,”

Ranvir watched as her son turned back to Giovanni.

“Will you read me another chapter of Everest?”

“After you’ve brushed your teeth and got your pyjamas on,” Giovanni replied letting go of his hand to gently nudge him up the stairs.

“Fine,” Tushaan rolled his eyes but turned back to his Mum, “night Mum, will you come and tuck me in?”

Ranvir laughed quietly but nodded, glad he hadn’t stopped needing her just yet. The pair watched him trudge back up the stairs before turning to each other.

“It’s a bit early for him isn’t it?” Giovanni asked, twisting his left wrist to check the time.

“Well, with jet lag and the time difference,” she trailed off.

Giovanni raised an eyebrow at her defiantly.

“Thought we could watch the sunset together,” she confessed guiltily.

“Poor Tushaan,” Gio teased, the corners of his lips turning up in a smirk.

“Stop it!” Ranvir laughed, shoving his shoulder, “we can watch the sunset with him tomorrow.”

“You’re mean! Abandoning your son-”

“No!” She exclaimed, quickly deciding to switch tact, “I just wanted to thank you for all the planning you did with some alone time,” her tone switching to seduction.

Ranvir almost groaned out loud at herself, she could hear the nervousness in her voice despite her attempt at being flirty. She couldn’t help it, she was still unsure on her place in his life. Sure, she knew they were together and happy (as far as she could tell) but this was still a very new development; did he feel the same way that she felt about him? Wanting to jump him at every second with reckless abandon? Could she really pull off the temptress role or would that repulse him? She was spiralling and could feel her hands start to shake now, the voice inside her head asking how pathetic it was for her to believe he’d fancy her as her eyes diverted to the floor. A pair of black trainers entered her vision and she felt the press of Giovanni's kiss on her temple long and sweet.

“If you wanted to get me alone all you had to do was ask,” he tilted her chin up and winked, “I’ve been dying to get you by yourself all day,”

Ranvir looked up at him in surprise. His green eyes were playful but she could read the genuine emotion in the softness of his face. It was a look she knew all too well and she could practically hear him begging her to stop questioning this.

“GIO!”

The man in question sighed with a smile.

“I’ll be right up little man!” He called back, sliding both of his hands down her arms until they linked fingers. “Why don’t you open the wine?” he suggested, bringing her hands up to press a kiss to her knuckles.

Ranvir nodded wordlessly, blinking a couple of times to pull herself from her stupor. Giovanni laughed and let go of her hands, ushering her up the stairs first. How he still had that effect on her after nearly four months together was confounding. She shook her head at herself, turning on the stairs just in time to catch him staring at her legs. Ranvir smirked.

“What?” Gio asked, suppressing a smirk.

Ranvir shook her head and made her way into the kitchen to look for two wine glasses as her partner made his way into her son’s room.

-

With a new found ease that only came after months of dance practice, Ranvir sat down on the edge of the pier from their bedroom. She carefully adjusted the wine glasses and bottle she’d bought outside with her so they were far enough away that she wouldn’t knock them over in her usual clumsy way. Her feet dangled in the water and she gave herself a second to revel in the feeling. On the horizon line, the sun was beginning to set, the sky a colourful explosion of blues and pinks. She heard Giovanni approach and smiled to herself as he slid in behind her, his extra seven or so inches of height allowing his feet to also reach the water as she leaned back into his chest.

“He fell asleep before I even finished the chapter,”

“See, I told you it was his bedtime,” Ranvir grinned.

“Yes you did,” Giovanni smiled, pressing a kiss to her shoulder.

“Did you want me to pour the wine?” She asked, twisting slightly and forcing Gio to shimmy backward a little.

“Sure,” He reached for both glasses as Ranvir uncorked the red and poured them slowly. “What is it?”

“Eben Sadie,” she read from the label, “South Africa,”

“There’s a wine cellar here that’s supposed to hold a first vintage from 95,”

Ranvir raised her eyebrows in slight disbelief; leave it to Giovanni to have picked somewhere with a rare wine cellar.

“Is that on your to do list?” She teased.

“Wine tasting with my girl,” he passed her a glass and took a sip, “check,”

“What else is on your list?” She asked as he rested his free hand on her thigh.

“Wouldn’t you like to know,”

“Yes, actually,”

Giovanni grinned at her, his fingers tracing light patterns on her leggings.

“That’s for me to know and you to find out,”

She rolled her eyes but smiled happily, twisting back around to look out at the sunset.

“This place truly is beautiful isn’t it?” Ranvir placed her wine glass beside her. She heard Gio make a noise of affirmation before both of his arms came around her middle and she leaned back into him.

He was warm and steady, just as he had been for every minute she’d known him.

The pair were silent as the sun slid below the horizon line leaving Ranvir to her own thoughts. This place was somewhere you bought a pretty Instagram model not a forty three year old mum. What on earth did she think she was playing at being here with him? The poor boy deserved someone who didn’t come with so much baggage and could offer him his own children and a marriage and could speak Italian with his family-

“Is everything okay?” Gio asked interrupting her thoughts, his hand splayed over her stomach protectively.

How he read her like a book when she wasn’t even looking at him she had no clue, but somehow he always managed to get there before she could completely spiral.

“Sorry,” she mumbled.

“What you sorry for?” He asked using his position to twist her in his arms until she was looking at him.

“Are you sure?” She replied staring at her hands, “are you sure that this is what you want?”

“This?” Giovanni echoed, a brow raised in confusion.

“Me,” Ranvir paused, looking up at him, “and everything that comes with me,”

“You know I love Tushaan,” Giovanni started.

“He’d follow you anywhere,” Ranvir let out a watery chuckle, her son really did idolise him.

“And you?”

“Me?”

“Would you follow me anywhere?”

She was quiet for a moment, her gaze returning to her hands as she willed herself not to cry.

“I just don’t know if that’s what’s best for you,”

“Hey,” Gio placed his hands over hers, forcing her to stop fidgeting, “I decide what’s best for me,” she nodded, afraid to say anything. “I’ve loved these past few months with you and," he paused, "‘everything that comes with you’” he parroted her own words back at her.

“And you’re happy?” Ranvir asked, looking up at him, “you’re happy with someone thirteen years older, with a son and a divorce in her back pocket?”

“Ranvi,”

She tried and failed to repress the smile at his nickname for her.

“I love your son, I love your heart, I love the journey we’ve been on together and I love the people we are when we’re together. I wouldn’t trade any of it, ever,”

“You’re sure?”

“Yes,” he affirmed taking her head in his hands and kissing her softly. “Please stop believing that you aren’t the best thing for me,”

“And you definitely fancy me?” She asked, a hint of a smile on her face.

“I have been waiting to jump you all day,” he rolled his eyes, “I thought we might join the mile high club earlier,”

“Giovanni!” She exclaimed laughing loudly.

“Maybe on the way back?”

He was grinning at her and she felt inexplicably soft at the way he’d made her laugh whilst trying to convince her to stop doubting herself but that was Giovanni all over.

“Thank you,” she smiled up at him as he brushed her hair from her face.

“Any time baby,” he kissed the tip of her nose and then her lips, pressing her closer to his chest as his hands wound into her hair.

“I should,” she paused as he kissed her again, “tuck Tushaan in,” she managed through a laugh as Giovanni continued to kiss her.

“Okay,” he said, showing no signs of releasing her.

“The sooner I go the sooner I get back and the quicker we can lock the door,”

“Didn’t you use that logic on your son earlier?”

“Is it working?” Ranvir replied, tilting her head in question. There was a brief pause and then-

“Yes,” Gio agreed, finally letting her slide out of his arms with a chuckle, “hurry back,”

“You got it,” she grinned.

**Author's Note:**

> I might turn this into a one-shot profile so if anyone has anything they'd like me to write or include, please let me know. Also, after this one-shot there will be no further mention of Ranvir's son. I felt weird writing it, I feel even weirder publishing it - but I also don't know how to write this particular one-shot without him.


End file.
